All posts filed under: NAGALAND

Explore Nagaland

Rootsandleisure_Mustard seed-photo

“Nature Gives Me Creative Direction for My Recipes and Photoshoots” – Meet Chef and Food Stylist Akhrieno from Nagaland

  Our love for food and photography can take us places. This time it has taken us to art. We recently cam across this beautiful Instagram post by Akhrieno from Nagaland. It was a photo of a cake decorated with small whole mandarins, big green leaves, and lovely icing. It looked like a photo of a snow-covered town taken of some fictional world from a novel. Soft fragrant orange-scented cake coated with mandarin milk syrup, decorated with whole peeled satsuma mandarins | Baked and Styled by Akhrieno ‘Mustard.Seed’ We couldn’t help but check out more of her work, and by doing so, we were taken to this fascinating world of stories, as told by Akhrieno’s artwork, which had plenty of character and rustic charm. After filling our hearts with glee, we decided to finally reach out to their creator and find out her/his story! That’s when we found out that the artist behind was Akhrieno K Jamir from Nagaland, a full-time mom and food photographer, who used to be a professional chef in India and …

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This Petite Illustrator from Nagaland is Cracking People Up With Her Local Humor | Meet Lanu Tsudir – Creator of ‘The Midget’

  In the world of memes and Instagram reels, we found our little solace in Lanu’s Instagram page  “the______midget”, a page we discovered when someone from twitter shared her work. Not very long after that, we caught hold of her on Instagram and got chatting away but most of all who know her already will agree with us that her work is a dose of happiness and will leave you reminiscing about the bygone days and very ‘current mood’ instances. So, here we are, join us and get to know Lanu better.  We hope you enjoy scrolling through her work as much as we did. Meet Lanu Tsüdir, 28-year-old doodle artist from Kohima, Nagaland. With a Masters’s degree in English Literature from the University of Delhi, and taking a break at home in Nagaland, she is making her presence known during this quarantine through her webcomic ‘The Midget’ filled with unique local humor. We had a chat with her to know more about this awesome artist! Doodle artist Lanu Tsüdir from Nagaland Hello Lanu, please …

Rootsandleisure_Naga pork bamboo shoot

Authentic Recipe of The Popular Naga ‘Pork with Bamboo Shoot’ from Nagaland

Here’s a recipe for a local favorite pork dish from Nagaland submitted by Sentienla (profile at the bottom). Pork with bamboo shoot is a favorite dish in Nagaland, whether it’s a humble meal at home with family or for important celebrations like weddings, tribal festivals, or Christmas. This recipe features pork belly, which adds a special succulent flavor due to the fat content. Let’s get cooking! Ingredients:  Pork belly ( cut into cubes) – 500gm Dry red chilies 13-15 nos Garlic 12-15 cloves 1/2 cup of dry bamboo shoot Water 100-200ml Salt to taste Directions to cook:  Soak the dry red chilies in hot water for 6-10mins. Then take a mortar and pestle, and ground them. Soak the dried bamboo shoot in water (room temperature) for 3-5 mins. Coarsely ground the garlic in a mortar and pestle  Take a deep pot and put the pork belly – cut into pieces, and cook on low flame until the fat from the meat starts coming out. Stir occasionally Now, add the soaked dry bamboo shoot, crushed garlic, …

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Music Producer / Mix Engineer VI-LO from Nagaland Chats about his First Single “Remember When”

Today we chat with Vizo Solo aka VI-LO from Nagaland as he gets candid about his journey as a band member (drummer) to becoming his own person as a music producer /Mix engineer. He is super excited about the launch of his first single as a music producer. Stay on for the full conversation below… Music producer and mix engineer Vilo Solo from Nagaland (producer name VI-LO) talks about his newly released single. R&L: Hi Vizo, congrats on releasing your first solo production! We’ve been checking out your work, and we are super interested to know more about you. So please introduce yourself to the R&L fam Vizo: Hi, I am Vizovolie Solo, and I go by my producer name – VI-LO. I come from Kohima village (Nagaland) but I grew up in Medziphema. I am currently based out of Bangalore where I dabble with music production; I am also a mix engineer. I came to Bangalore in 2018, after completing my business studies in Pune. I wanted to build a full-time career out of my …

Rootsandleisure_Lockdown home

21 Things to Do During Lockdown – by Ikaty Kinimi from Nagaland

Halfway through 2020, and we are still uncertain about how and when this pandemic situation is going to clear up. During this time, each new day brings a new surprise .. a new story.. a new challenge. And to think – most of us stayed in (inside our homes) as early as March this year, thinking things will go back to normal soon enough. Well, from where we stand today, that timeline looks blurry. That being said, how many of us here have some regret about the way we dwindled months (4 months and counting..) spent indoors to forgettable moments under the guise of chaos and uncertainties that will soon vanish as the situation gets better? If you have raised your hand, you are not alone. Because these are not ordinary times, and indeed chaotic outside. But if this is the new normal – at least for a little more time, can we take reign of how we spend the remainder of our days? How do you want to freeze this COVID period in your …

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Recipe | Learn How to Make The Famous Axone (Fermented Soyabean) From Nagaland

[First published on 25th May, 2019] Axone (pronounced ‘Aakhuni’) is a fermented soybean paste with a very strong pungent smell, and it is one of the most popular spices from Nagaland, in the North East of India. It is indigenous to the ‘Sumi’ Naga tribe but is widely used across all Naga dishes. While locals in Nagaland usually buy it from the market, it is also made at home. Axone made by the Sumi tribe is most favored, obviously. Today, we have Inali Jane Ayemi, a passionate cook from Nagaland, to guide us through the entire process of making Axone at home. All we need are soybeans, a pressure cooker, and leaves to wrap them for fermentation. The complete process takes about a week. Let’s get started! Preparing Axone (aakhuni) at home: Wash the soya beans and soak them for about 20-30 mins Cook it in a pressure cooker, then strain it dry Then pound the soyabean to make it into a paste (as shown in the photo) Wrap portions of the pounded soyabean paste …

Rootsandleisure_Paratha and aloo with tea

Recipe of ‘Plain Paratha and Aloo Fry’ with Chai by Khevito Elvis Lee

As the lockdown continues, most of us are in a constant pursuit to pick up on new skills – and cooking is turning out to be quite popular. That being said, it may not be that easy for most of us to master our favorite dishes in such a short period of time. But this is where our evening starts to brighten up. . . Over the last 3-4 years of our short existence (so far), we have been lucky to have met so many passionate and talented and kind folks who have been inspiring us from day 1. Today our friend Khevito Elvis Lee – chef and owner of the popular ‘Hornbill Restaurant’ in Delhi, is here to teach us how to make the yummiest paratha and aloo fry! Yes, we know, it’s one of our favorite dishes in this world! Best part is, it is super easy to make , and the ingredients are easy to find in your kitchen anyday. So without wasting much time, let’s get started! Ingredients for Plain Paratha …

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“The Covid Pandemic Brought a Lot of Helplessness Initially, But Very Soon We Shifted to How We Can Help” ~ Artist Kenei Solo from Nagaland

  As we weather the COVID pandemic with fear, caution, and sometimes frustration, this post is to highlight how young people are doing their bit to help. We had an artist from Nagaland – Kenei Solo, reach out to us to inform about an initiative she had started with a bunch of artist friends to raise funds, with the aim to help individuals affected by the lockdown – and the pandemic at large. About the campaign: A doner needs to commission a portrait art from any of the eight participating artists for Rs. 500 and up. The doner gets the portrait and every rupee raised will go to ‘Green Team Kohima‘ – another small team of young people working hard to provide free ration and help to local people affected by the lockdowns. Commission a portrait to donate: A bunch of young artists from Nagaland started a fundraising initiative to donate to charities to aid them in their #COVID19 outreach helping families & individuals in need. Here’s what each artist has to say about why …

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Lockdown Special Recipe by Kristi Kikon | Popular ‘Naga Chow’ Made with Maggi Noodles

Hello there! It’s been a while since we’ve shared anything on our online blog. Our last post was published on the 26th of Jan, and we have been on an intentional break as we got caught up with our busy life. But all that while, we have been thinking hard about ‘de-stressing’, ‘taking it easy’, ‘time to chill’ and so many such ideas. And then COVID happens. Look at us! All locked inside our homes as we coalesce into this virtual community sharing our fears and thoughts – while trying hard to stay positive amidst all the chaos that is happening around us. These trying times have highlighted the importance of staying connected with like-minded individuals, sharing information, encouraging and supporting each other, and extending a helping hand to our neighbors and communities. Today’s ‘Instant Noodles’ recipe is a perfect demonstration of how the community can come together and make things happen! Here’s what happened: One of our readers, currently residing in Delhi during this lockdown, reached out to us expressing his desperate craving for …